Communications based on vehicle diagnostics and indications

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems for communicating vehicle conditions based on vehicle component diagnostics and indications are provided. Specifically, various components of a vehicle may provide diagnostic information that can be collected and interpreted by a diagnostics module. The diagnostics module may determine to present the diagnostic information to a third party and/or vehicle occupant according to predetermined settings. Such diagnostic information may be presented in a conversational manner. Moreover, diagnostic information may be automatically evaluated in determining to provide course of action advice and other communications via the diagnostic module.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefits of and priority, under 35U.S.C. §119(e), to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. Nos. 61/560,509,filed on Nov. 16, 2011, entitled “Complete Vehicle Ecosystem”;61/637,164, filed on Apr. 23, 2012, entitled “Complete VehicleEcosystem”; 61/646,747, filed on May 14, 2012, entitled “Branding ofElectrically Propelled Vehicles Via the Generation of Specific OperatingSounds”; 61/653,275, filed on May 30, 2012, entitled “VehicleApplication Store for Console”; 61/653,264, filed on May 30, 2012,entitled “Control of Device Features Based on Vehicle State”;61/653,563, filed on May 31, 2012, entitled “Complete VehicleEcosystem”; 61/663,335, filed on Jun. 22, 2012, entitled “CompleteVehicle Ecosystem”; 61/672,483, filed on Jul. 17, 2012, entitled“Vehicle Climate Control”; and 61/714,016, filed on Oct. 15, 2012,entitled “Vehicle Middleware.” The entire disclosures of theapplications listed above are hereby incorporated by reference, in theirentirety, for all that they teach and for all purposes.

This application is also related to U.S. patent application Ser. Nos.13/420,236, filed on Mar. 14, 2012, entitled, “Configurable VehicleConsole”; 13/420,240, filed on Mar. 14, 2012, entitled “Removable,Configurable Vehicle Console”; 13/462,593, filed on May 2, 2012,entitled “Configurable Dash Display”; 13/462,596, filed on May 2, 2012,entitled “Configurable Heads-Up Dash Display”; ______, filed on Nov. 16,2012, entitled “Implementation of Conquest Functionality in AutomotiveConsole” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-228); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012,entitled “Gesture Recognition for On-Board Display” (Attorney Docket No.6583-229); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Vehicle ApplicationStore for Console” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-230); ______, filed on Nov.16, 2012, entitled “Sharing Applications/Media Between Car and Phone(Hydroid)” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-231); ______, filed on Nov. 16,2012, entitled “In-Cloud Connection for Car Multimedia” (Attorney DocketNo. 6583-232); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “MusicStreaming” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-233); ______, filed on Nov. 16,2012, entitled “Control of Device Features Based on Vehicle State”(Attorney Docket No. 6583-234); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled“Insurance Tracking” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-235); ______, filed onNov. 16, 2012, entitled “Law Breaking/Behavior Sensor” (Attorney DocketNo. 6583-236); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “EtiquetteSuggestion” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-237); ______, filed on Nov. 16,2012, entitled “Parking Space Finder Based on Parking Meter Data”(Attorney Docket No. 6583-238); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled“Parking Meter Expired Alert” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-239); ______,filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Object Sensing (PedestrianAvoidance/Accident Avoidance)” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-240); ______,filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Proximity Warning Relative to OtherCars” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-241); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012,entitled “Street Side Sensors” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-242); ______,filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Car Location” (Attorney Docket No.6583-243); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Universal Bus inthe Car” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-244); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012,entitled “Mobile Hot Spot/Router/Application Share Site or Network”(Attorney Docket No. 6583-245); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled“Universal Console Chassis for the Car” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-246);______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Middleware” (Attorney DocketNo. 6583-247); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Real TimeTraffic” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-248); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012,entitled “Map Updating” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-249); ______, filed onNov. 16, 2012, entitled “Felon Identifier” (Attorney Docket No.6583-251); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Behavioral Trackingand Vehicle Applications” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-252); ______, filedon Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Improvements to Controller Area Network Bus”(Attorney Docket No. 6583-314); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled“Location Information Exchange Between Vehicle and Device” (AttorneyDocket No. 6583-315); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “In CarCommunication Between Devices” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-316); ______,filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Configurable Hardware Unit for CarSystems” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-317); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012,entitled “Feature Recognition for Configuring a Vehicle Console andAssociated Devices” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-318); ______, filed onNov. 16, 2012, entitled “Configurable Vehicle Console” (Attorney DocketNo. 6583-412); ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “ConfigurableDash Display” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-413); ______, filed on Nov. 16,2012, entitled “Configurable Heads-Up Dash Display” (Attorney Docket No.6583-414); and ______, filed on Nov. 16, 2012, entitled “Removable,Configurable Vehicle Console” (Attorney Docket No. 6583-415). The entiredisclosures of the applications listed above are hereby incorporated byreference, in their entirety, for all that they teach and for allpurposes.

BACKGROUND

Whether using private, commercial, or public transport, the movement ofpeople and/or cargo has become a major industry. In today'sinterconnected world, daily travel is essential to engaging in commerce.Commuting to and from work can account for a large portion of atraveler's day. As a result, vehicle manufacturers have begun to focuson making this commute, and other journeys, more enjoyable.

Currently, vehicle manufacturers attempt to entice travelers to use aspecific conveyance based on any number of features. Most of thesefeatures focus on vehicle safety, or efficiency. From the addition ofsafety-restraints, air-bags, and warning systems to more efficientengines, motors, and designs, the vehicle industry has worked to appeasethe supposed needs of the traveler. Recently, however, vehiclemanufactures have shifted their focus to user and passenger comfort as aprimary concern. Making an individual more comfortable while travelinginstills confidence and pleasure in using a given vehicle, increasing anindividual's preference for a given manufacturer and/or vehicle type.

One way to instill comfort in a vehicle is to create an environmentwithin the vehicle similar to that of an individual's home or place ofcomfort. Integrating features in a vehicle that are associated withcomfort found in an individual's home can ease a traveler's transitionfrom home to vehicle. Several manufacturers have added comfort featuresin vehicles such as the following: leather seats, adaptive and/orpersonal climate control systems, music and media players, ergonomiccontrols, and in some cases Internet connectivity. However, becausethese manufacturers have added features to a conveyance, they have builtcomfort around a vehicle and failed to build a vehicle around comfort.

Modern vehicles use a number of communication systems and/or networks.Each of these communication systems and/or networks may have a busstructure that is open or proprietary. Each of these buses may also bespecifically designed to work in a vehicle or may be available as ageneral communication protocol. These communication systems and/ornetworks connect the various individual components of the vehiclesthrough their respective buses. Examples of proprietary vehicle busarchitecture include Controller Area Network (CAN) Bus, LocalInterconnect Network (LIN) Bus, and the various Original Equipmentmanufacturer (OEM) Bus among others. Examples of open and general busarchitecture include wired or wireless Ethernet and Low-VoltageDifferential Signaling (LVDS) among others.

As usage of the CAN standard evolves, many vehicles and systemsimplementing CAN are using both a high-speed and a low-speed CAN bus inparallel. The high-speed CAN bus carries information that is vital forvehicle operation or safety and is delivered to various part of thevehicle or system in substantially real time. For example, thehigh-speed CAN bus would be used in a situation where an airbag deploys.When sensors in the bumper or at the front of the vehicle indicate thatthe vehicle has been involved in a frontal collision, the sensors cansend priority information via the high-speed CAN bus to the airbagdeployment unit to deploy the airbag. The low-speed CAN bus would beused for other less critical applications.

A number of extensions have been proposed and used to extend thecapabilities of the various bus architectures. For example, On-BoardDiagnostics (OBD) adds support for requesting data from vehiclecomponents for diagnostics purposes using Parameter Identifiers (PIDs).While OBD is designed to work with CAN bus, OBD can be implemented towork with other general and/or OEM specific buses. Further, specificvehicle components such as the Engine Control Unit (ECU), TransmissionControl Unit (TCU), Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), and generally BodyControl Modules (BCMs) can have specific protocol extensions to workwith the various bus architectures. Further, extensions to the busarchitectures are needed to support carrying information regardingvarious environmental type issues such as emissions information tocomply with various government regulation mandates.

Vehicles, particularly passenger vehicles, are evolving rapidly withemerging safety, entertainment, and communication technologies. Existingvehicle bus protocols, which are largely designed for safety, aregenerally unsuitable for other non-safety communications, due to low busbandwidth and transmission speed. There are therefore various needs inthe art including improving information flow between vehicle components,leveraging the various communication systems and/or networks in the artto enhance vehicle safety, data security, and/or data processing, andproviding remote authorized third party (e.g., peace officers, vehiclemanufacturers, vehicle security services, and owners) access to avehicle's functions and state information while maintaining securityagainst unauthorized parties and components.

SUMMARY

There is a need for a vehicle ecosystem that can integrate both physicaland mental comforts while seamlessly operating with current electronicdevices to result in an intuitive and immersive user experience. Theseand other needs are addressed by the various aspects, embodiments,and/or configurations of the present disclosure. Also, while thedisclosure is presented in terms of exemplary embodiments, it should beappreciated that individual aspects of the disclosure can be separatelyclaimed.

A method and system for diagnosing and communicating events associatedwith one or more components of vehicle is described. In general, avehicle may provide information regarding its recorded and/or monitoredsystem and component states via a self-diagnostic and/or reportingcapability. Examples of these system and/or component states mayinclude, but are not limited to, a vehicle's fuel system, emissions,ignition system, speed controls, motor/engine data, transmission,computer system(s), Engine Control Unit (“ECU”) data, real-timemonitoring, and the like. In some cases, this data may be provided viathe vehicle's standardized diagnostics module (e.g., via the On-BoardDiagnostics (“OBD”), OBD-II, Enhanced OBD (“EOBD”), EOBD-II, and/orcountry-specific OBD modules, and the like). Additionally oralternatively, the data may be collected, monitored, and even stored viaanother data collection mechanism that is in communication with one ormore vehicle components via the Controller Area Network Bus (“CAN Bus”),or equivalent communications protocol, and an associated memory.

It is an aspect of the present disclosure that certain vehicle systemstate information may be interpreted and presented to a vehicleuser/passenger. In some embodiments, the presentation of information toa user/passenger may include a conversational translation of vehiclediagnostic information, or events. For example, a vehicle may detectthrough its various diagnostic equipment that an oxygen sensor hasfailed. In lieu of, or in addition to, activating a flashing “CheckEngine” indicator (e.g., a code that may be used by some carmanufacturers to indicate an oxygen sensor failure), embodiments of thepresent disclosure are directed to providing a conversationaltranslation of the failure by providing a description of the failure. Inother words, the description may state “An Oxygen Sensor Failure HasBeen Detected.” It is anticipated that the information in thisdescription may be provided to a user/passenger by output that isvisual, audible, tactile, and/or combinations thereof. As can beexpected, an audible output of this information may be provided by oneor more associated speakers and/or sound transducers. The visual outputmay be provided to a console, dash display, and/or associated device(e.g., smart-phone, PDA, PC, Tablet PC, Apple iPad®, Apple iPhone®,Android® phone, Android® tablet, and/or other portable electronicdevice). Additionally or alternatively, this information may becommunicated to a third party such as a repair facility, garage,manufacturer, dealership, and/or other party. In some embodiments, thepresentation and/or communication of information may be madeautomatically in response to detecting an event.

In some embodiments, the diagnostics module may determine that aspecific condition (e.g., failure, warning, indication, etc.) should becoupled with additional information for the benefit of a receiving party(e.g., a vehicle occupant, third party, remote node, etc.). Thisadditional information may be used to help diagnose a greater problemassociated with the vehicle. Among other things, information may berecorded that relates to the driving behavior of an individual prior toand/or after a specific condition is detected. For example, informationmay be recorded about a vehicle operator who has increased in speed andused the brakes within a given time period. In this case, data, such asa vehicle's gravitational-force (G-Force), pitch, yaw,location/orientation, engine temperature, and the like, may be usedalone or together to determine possible causes of the observed specificcondition. This information may be sent to a third party (e.g., vehiclemanufacturer, dealer, repair facility, remote node, mechanic, coderecording storage, etc.) and/or presented to at least one vehicleoccupant (e.g., a vehicle operator).

Other examples of additional information that can be provided to areceiving party may include comment, suggestion, options, generalinformation, combinations thereof, and/or other information related toan observed specific condition. For instance, stress/strain gages, forcetransducers, and/or accelerometers may determine that a vehicle has beenexposed to a certain stress level that is above a predetermined limit.As such, the diagnostic module may provide a communication to areceiving party that includes a comment and suggestion. In this examplethe communication may output the following communication, “The vehiclehas suffered stress above normal limits, please consider driving morecarefully.”

In one embodiment, the additional information may be provided to areceiving party for the purposes of seeking input from the receivingparty. For example, a diagnostic module may determine that a specificfault combination associated with engine failure has been detected. Inresponse, the diagnostic module may provide a communication of theinformation and ask for user input regarding a next step. In this case,the diagnostic module may present the following question “Would you liketo send data to a repair facility regarding the fault data recentlyrecorded?” In the event that a user answers in the affirmative to thisquestion, the diagnostic module may prompt the user for furtherinformation regarding a choice of repair facility. As can be expected,user input may be provided via speech, gesture, physical input, displayselection, and the like.

Additionally or alternatively, the diagnostic module may utilizegeographical vehicle location information and stored vendor/repairfacility information to provide one or more choices to the user. Thediagnostic module may suggest a repair facility and/or other nearbyservices/vendors based on a geographical location of the vehicle. Forinstance, the diagnostic module may provide the user with the followingcommunication, “You are close to three repair facilities.” In oneembodiment, the diagnostic module may filter suggestions based on storedratings. For instance, the communication may be provided to a user asfollows, “You are close to three repair facilities, two of these repairfacilities have a rating of three out of four stars and above. Would youlike to make an appointment?”

In another embodiment, the diagnostic module may communicate with one ormore repair facilities to determine facility information such ascomponent/system inventory levels, repair scheduling, time to repair,costs, and/or the like. As can be appreciated, this facility informationmay be communicated to a vehicle occupant via the diagnostic module.Based on the facility information, the diagnostic module may determineto present a communication to a user. Additionally or alternatively, thediagnostic module may automatically send data, schedule appointments,and/or determine to provide an informative communication, based onpredetermined settings/rules.

The phrases “at least one”, “one or more”, and “and/or” are open-endedexpressions that are both conjunctive and disjunctive in operation. Forexample, each of the expressions “at least one of A, B and C”, “at leastone of A, B, or C”, “one or more of A, B, and C”, “one or more of A, B,or C” and “A, B, and/or C” means A alone, B alone, C alone, A and Btogether, A and C together, B and C together, or A, B and C together.

The term “a” or “an” entity refers to one or more of that entity. Assuch, the terms “a” (or “an”), “one or more” and “at least one” can beused interchangeably herein. It is also to be noted that the terms“comprising”, “including”, and “having” can be used interchangeably.

The term “automatic” and variations thereof, as used herein, refers toany process or operation done without material human input when theprocess or operation is performed. However, a process or operation canbe automatic, even though performance of the process or operation usesmaterial or immaterial human input, if the input is received beforeperformance of the process or operation. Human input is deemed to bematerial if such input influences how the process or operation will beperformed. Human input that consents to the performance of the processor operation is not deemed to be “material.”

The term “automotive navigation system” is a satellite navigation systemdesigned for use in automobiles. It typically uses a GPS navigationdevice to acquire position data to locate the user on a road in theunit's map database. Using the road database, the unit can givedirections to other locations along roads also in its database. Deadreckoning using distance data from sensors attached to the drivetrain, agyroscope and an accelerometer can be used for greater reliability, asGPS signal loss and/or multipath can occur due to urban canyons ortunnels.

The term “bus” and variations thereof, as used herein, refers to asubsystem that transfers information and/or data between variouscomponents. A bus generally refers to the collection communicationhardware interface, interconnects, bus architecture, and/or protocoldefining the communication scheme for a communication system and/orcommunication network. A bus may also be specifically refer to a part ofa communication hardware that interfaces the communication hardware withthe interconnects that connect to other components of the correspondingcommunication network. The bus may be for a wired network, such as aphysical bus, or wireless network, such as part of an antenna orhardware that couples the communication hardware with the antenna. A busarchitecture supports a defined format in which information and/or datais arranged when sent and received through a communication network. Aprotocol may define the format and rules of communication of a busarchitecture.

The terms “communication device,” “smartphone,” and “mobile device,” andvariations thereof, as used herein, are used interchangeably and includeany type of device capable of communicating with one or more of anotherdevice and/or across a communications network, via a communicationsprotocol, and the like. Exemplary communication devices may include butare not limited to smartphones, handheld computers, laptops, netbooks,notebook computers, subnotebooks, tablet computers, scanners, portablegaming devices, phones, pagers, GPS modules, portable music players, andother Internet-enabled and/or network-connected devices.

The term “communication system” or “communication network” andvariations thereof, as used herein, refers to a collection ofcommunication components capable of one or more of transmission, relay,interconnect, control, or otherwise manipulate information or data fromat least one transmitter to at least one receiver. As such, thecommunication may include a range of systems supporting point-to-pointto broadcasting of the information or data. A communication system mayrefer to the collection of individual communication hardware as well asthe interconnects associated with and connecting the individualcommunication hardware. Communication hardware may refer to dedicatedcommunication hardware or may refer a processor coupled with acommunication means (e.g., an antenna) and running software capable ofusing the communication means to send a signal within the communicationsystem. Interconnect refers some type of wired or wireless communicationlink that connects various components, such as communication hardware,within a communication system. A communication network may refer to aspecific setup of a communication system with the collection ofindividual communication hardware and interconnects having somedefinable network topography. A communication network may include wiredand/or wireless network having a pre-set to an ad hoc network structure.

The term “computer-readable medium” as used herein refers to anytangible storage and/or transmission medium that participate inproviding instructions to a processor for execution. Such a medium maytake many forms, including but not limited to, non-volatile media,volatile media, and transmission media. Non-volatile media includes, forexample, NVRAM, or magnetic or optical disks. Volatile media includesdynamic memory, such as main memory. Common forms of computer-readablemedia include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk,magnetic tape, or any other magnetic medium, magneto-optical medium, aCD-ROM, any other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, any otherphysical medium with patterns of holes, a RAM, a PROM, and EPROM, aFLASH-EPROM, a solid state medium like a memory card, any other memorychip or cartridge, a carrier wave as described hereinafter, or any othermedium from which a computer can read. A digital file attachment toe-mail or other self-contained information archive or set of archives isconsidered a distribution medium equivalent to a tangible storagemedium. When the computer-readable media is configured as a database, itis to be understood that the database may be any type of database, suchas relational, hierarchical, object-oriented, and/or the like.Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include a tangible storagemedium or distribution medium and prior art-recognized equivalents andsuccessor media, in which the software implementations of the presentdisclosure are stored.

The terms “dash” and “dashboard” and variations thereof, as used herein,are used interchangeably and include any panel and/or area of a vehicledisposed adjacent to an operator, user, and/or passenger. Typicaldashboards may include but are not limited to one or more control panel,instrument housing, head unit, indicator, gauge, meter, light, audioequipment, computer, screen, display, HUD unit, and graphical userinterface.

The terms “determine,” “calculate,” and “compute,” and variationsthereof, as used herein, are used interchangeably and include any typeof methodology, process, mathematical operation or technique.

The term “display” refers to a portion of a screen used to display theoutput of a computer to a user.

The term “displayed image” or “displayed object” refers to an imageproduced on the display. A typical displayed image is a window ordesktop or portion thereof, such as an icon. The displayed image mayoccupy all or a portion of the display.

The term “module” as used herein refers to any known or later developedhardware, software, firmware, artificial intelligence, fuzzy logic, orcombination of hardware and software that is capable of performing thefunctionality associated with that element.

It shall be understood that the term “means” as used herein shall begiven its broadest possible interpretation in accordance with 35 U.S.C.,Section 112, Paragraph 6. Accordingly, a claim incorporating the term“means” shall cover all structures, materials, or acts set forth herein,and all of the equivalents thereof. Further, the structures, materialsor acts and the equivalents thereof shall include all those described inthe summary of the invention, brief description of the drawings,detailed description, abstract, and claims themselves.

The term “satellite positioning system receiver” refers to a wirelessreceiver or transceiver to receive and/or send location signals fromand/or to a satellite positioning system, such as the Global PositioningSystem (“GPS”) (US), GLONASS (Russia), Galileo positioning system (EU),Compass navigation system (China), and Regional Navigational SatelliteSystem (India).

The term “screen,” “touch screen,” or “touchscreen” refers to a physicalstructure that enables the user to interact with the computer bytouching areas on the screen and provides information to a user througha display. The touch screen may sense user contact in a number ofdifferent ways, such as by a change in an electrical parameter (e.g.,resistance or capacitance), acoustic wave variations, infrared radiationproximity detection, light variation detection, and the like. In aresistive touch screen, for example, normally separated conductive andresistive metallic layers in the screen pass an electrical current. Whena user touches the screen, the two layers make contact in the contactedlocation, whereby a change in electrical field is noted and thecoordinates of the contacted location calculated. In a capacitive touchscreen, a capacitive layer stores electrical charge, which is dischargedto the user upon contact with the touch screen, causing a decrease inthe charge of the capacitive layer. The decrease is measured, and thecontacted location coordinates determined. In a surface acoustic wavetouch screen, an acoustic wave is transmitted through the screen, andthe acoustic wave is disturbed by user contact. A receiving transducerdetects the user contact instance and determines the contacted locationcoordinates. The touch screen may or may not include a proximity sensorto sense a nearness of object, such as a user digit, to the screen.

The term “vehicle” as used herein includes any conveyance, or model of aconveyance, where the conveyance was originally designed for the purposeof moving one or more tangible objects, such as people, animals, cargo,and the like. The term “vehicle” does not require that a conveyancemoves or is capable of movement. Typical vehicles may include but are inno way limited to cars, trucks, motorcycles, busses, automobiles,trains, railed conveyances, boats, ships, marine conveyances, submarineconveyances, airplanes, space craft, flying machines, human-poweredconveyances, and the like.

The preceding is a simplified summary of the disclosure to provide anunderstanding of some aspects of the disclosure. This summary is neitheran extensive nor exhaustive overview of the disclosure and its variousaspects, embodiments, and/or configurations. It is intended neither toidentify key or critical elements of the disclosure nor to delineate thescope of the disclosure but to present selected concepts of thedisclosure in a simplified form as an introduction to the more detaileddescription presented below. As will be appreciated, other aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations of the disclosure are possibleutilizing, alone or in combination, one or more of the features setforth above or described in detail below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a vehicle in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a processing module in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 depicts a vehicle implementing processing modules configured inaccordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a computational system in accordance withembodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a vehicle computational system inaccordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 depicts a flow diagram in accordance with embodiments of thepresent disclosure; and

FIG. 7 depicts a flow diagram in accordance with embodiments of thepresent disclosure.

In the appended figures, similar components and/or features may have thesame reference label. Further, various components of the same type maybe distinguished by following the reference label by a letter thatdistinguishes among the similar components. If only the first referencelabel is used in the specification, the description is applicable to anyone of the similar components having the same first reference labelirrespective of the second reference label.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Presented herein are embodiments of a vehicle diagnostics and indicationcommunication system. The diagnostic system can comprise one device or acompilation of devices. Furthermore, the diagnostic system may utilizeon-board communication devices (e.g., displays, consoles, speakers,tactile sound transducers, and/or other components of a connectedvehicle), and/or external communication devices, such as cellulartelephones, or other smart devices. These communication devices may beemployed to send and receive data and/or communicate indications and/ordiagnostic information to a receiving party. In some embodiments, thecommunication device, or devices, can receive user input in unique ways.As described herein, the device(s) may be electrical, mechanical,electro-mechanical, software-based, and/or combinations thereof.

For purposes of explanation, numerous details are set forth in order toprovide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It should beappreciated, however, that the present invention may be practiced in avariety of ways beyond the specific details set forth herein.

Referring to FIG. 1, the vehicle 100 includes, among many componentscommon to vehicles, wheels 104, a power source 108 (such as an engine,motor, or energy storage system (e.g., battery or capacitive energystorage system)), a manual or automatic transmission 112, a manual orautomatic transmission gear controller 116, a power controller 120 (suchas a throttle), a braking system 136, a steering wheel 140, a displaypanel 144 (e.g., a dashboard displaying information regarding componentsin vehicle 100), and an occupant seating system 148.

Other components in vehicle 100 include communication components such asa wireless signal receiver/transmitter 152 to receive, and/or transmit,wireless signals between signal sources such as roadside beacons, andother electronic roadside devices, remote nodes, one or more thirdparties, a vehicle occupant, and a satellite positioning system receiver156 (e.g., a Global Positioning System (“GPS”) (US), GLONASS (Russia),Galileo positioning system (EU), Compass navigation system (China), andRegional Navigational Satellite System (India) receiver).

The vehicle 100 also includes a number of control units and sensors forthe various components of vehicle 100. Exemplary control units andsensors include wheel state sensor 160 to sense one or more of vehiclespeed, acceleration, deceleration, wheel rotation, wheel speed (e.g.,wheel revolutions-per-minute), wheel slip, and the like. Power sourcecontroller and energy output sensor 164 controls the power source and tosenses a power output of the power source 108. Example aspects of powersource controller and energy output sensor 164 include balancing themixture of fuel (e.g., gasoline, natural gas, or other sources of fuel)and other elements (e.g., air for combustion) and measuring one or moreof current engine speed (e.g., revolutions-per-minute), energy inputand/or output (e.g., voltage, current, fuel consumption, and torque),and the like. Switch state control unit 168 activates or deactivates thepower source (e.g., the ignition). Transmission control unit (“TCU”) 170sets the current state the transmission (e.g., gear selection orsetting) based on the state of gear controller 116. Power control unit174 sets the throttle for power source 108 given the state of powercontroller 120. Brake control unit 176 operates the current state(braking or non-braking) of braking system 136 based on the state of thebrake controller (which could be linked to power controller 120).

Vehicle 100 also includes other control units and sensors for safetypurposes. An airbag deployment system includes an airbag deploymentcontrol unit 133 and a collision sensor 132. When a collision isdetected by collision sensor 132, data is sent to airbag release controlunit 133 which determines whether to deploy the airbag based on the datareceived (e.g., the speed of the collision and the area of impact todetermine whether an airbag deployment can promote safety). Other safetycomponents include seat belt control unit and sensors for setting theseat belt (e.g., engaging or disengaging the seat belt during hardbreaking), head light control unit and sensors for headlight 128 andother lights (e.g., emergency light, brake light, parking light, foglight, interior or passenger compartment light, and/or tail light state(on or off)), door settings (locking and unlocking), window settings(opening or closing), one or cameras or other imaging sensors (whichcommonly convert an optical image into an electronic signal but mayinclude other devices for detection objects such as an electromagneticradiation emitter/receiver that emits electromagnetic radiation andreceives electromagnetic waves reflected by the object) to senseobjects, such as other vehicles and pedestrians and optionally determinethe distance, trajectory and speed of such objects, in the vicinity orpath of the vehicle, and other components and sensors as known in theart.

Vehicle 100 further includes components for the convenience andenjoyment of the occupants or operators. Seating system controller andsensor 178 sets the position and other settings of a seat and measurevarious attributes of an occupant of the seat (e.g., the current weightof seated occupant) in a selected seat of the seating system 148.Entertainment system 190, preferably located in the head unit of thepassenger compartment, provides entertainment options such as music orvideo for occupants of vehicle 100.

Examples of other vehicle components include one or more cameras orother imaging sensors (which commonly convert an optical image into anelectronic signal but may include other devices for detection objectssuch as an electromagnetic radiation emitter/receiver that emitselectromagnetic radiation and receives electromagnetic waves reflectedby the object) to sense objects, such as other vehicles and pedestriansand optionally determine the distance, trajectory and speed of suchobjects, in the vicinity or path of the vehicle, odometer readingsensor, trip mileage reading sensor, wind speed sensor, radartransmitter/receiver output, brake wear sensor, steering/torque sensor,oxygen sensor, ambient lighting sensor, vision system sensor, rangingsensor, parking sensor, heating, venting, and air conditioning (HVAC)sensor, water sensor, air-fuel ratio meter, blind spot monitor, halleffect sensor, microphone, radio frequency (RF) sensor, infrared (IR)sensor, vehicle control system sensors, wireless network sensor (e.g.,Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth sensor), cellular data sensor, and other sensorsknown to those of skill in the vehicle art.

Vehicle 100 includes one or more vehicle buses 180 for connecting thevarious components and systems of vehicle 100 as described above. Inmodern vehicles, subsystems such as an anti-lock braking system (ABS),which may be used by brake control unit 176 and braking system 136,engine control unit (ECU), which may be used by power source control164, transmission control unit (TCU), which may be used by transmissioncontrol unit 170 and gear controller 116, and supplemental restraintsystem (SRS), such as airbag deployment control unit 133 and collisionsensor 132 and seating system controller and sensor 178, are frequentlyinterconnected using a standardized bus. Standardized buses for use invehicles include Controller Area Network (CAN), and Local InterconnectNetwork (LIN) and others, as are known in the art. In particular, thesecomponents and subsystems may use the high-speed CAN bus for real-timeinformation. Other components with lower priorities may use thelow-speed CAN bus to transmit information. Vehicle bus 180 (which isoptional) is illustrated as one bus in FIG. 1. However, vehicle 100 mayinclude one or more of these standardized buses, such as a combinationof the high-speed and low-speed CAN, LIN, and/or other buses. Also,vehicle bus 180 may further include and support extensions tostandardized buses, such as the FlexCAN extension to the CAN bus.Further, vehicle bus 180 may include standardized communication networksthat can be implemented vehicle 100. Well known networks includeEthernet, Wi-Fi, USB, I²C, RS232, RS485 and FireWire.

Vehicle 100 also includes processing module 124. Preferably, processingmodule 124 is placed in the trunk, hood (not shown), behind the headunit (not shown), and/or other accessible but unseen locations.Processing module 124 is coupled to vehicle bus 180 and providesprocessing for data related to vehicle bus 180 and other vehiclecomponents.

Processing modules, for example, can perform, monitor, and/or controlcritical and non-critical tasks, functions, and operations, such asinteraction with and/or monitoring and/or control of critical andnon-critical on board sensors and vehicle operations (e.g., engine,transmission, throttle, brake power assist/brake lock-up, electronicsuspension, fraction and stability control, parallel parking assistance,occupant protection systems, power steering assistance,self-diagnostics, event data recorders, steer-by-wire and/orbrake-by-wire operations, vehicle-to-vehicle interactions,vehicle-to-infrastructure interactions, partial and/or full automation,telematics, navigation/SPS, multimedia systems, audio systems, rear seatentertainment systems, game consoles, tuners (SDR), heads-up display,night vision, lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control, adaptiveheadlights, collision warning, blind spot sensors, park/reverseassistance, tire pressure monitoring, traffic signal recognition,vehicle tracking (e.g., LoJack™), dashboard/instrument cluster, lights,seats, climate control, voice recognition, remote keyless entry,security alarm systems, and wiper/window control). Processing modulescan be enclosed in an advanced EMI-shielded enclosure containingmultiple expansion modules. Processing modules can have a “black box” orflight data recorder technology, containing an event (or drivinghistory) recorder (containing operational information collected fromvehicle on board sensors and provided by nearby or roadside signaltransmitters), a crash survivable memory unit, an integrated controllerand circuitry board, and network interfaces. Processing module 124 isfurther disclosed with reference to FIG. 2.

As set forth below and as shown in FIG. 3, multiple processing modules124A-C may be located at various locations in a common vehicle. Thedisparate, spaced apart locations of the processing modules 124A-Cprovide redundancy in the event of a collision or other catastrophicevent. For example, a collision with the rear of the vehicle 100 maydamage the processing module 124C but not the processing modules 124A,B.

As will be appreciated, the multiple processing modules 124A-C may beconfigured to operate in an active/active and/or active/standby mode.These operating modes describe the manner in which first and second(redundant) devices operate under normal conditions. In active/standbyimplementations, only the primary device in a pair processes informationand issues commands. The standby device sits idle, ready to assume theactive role should the primary device fail. The standby device mayreceive, from the primary device, processing, command, and primarydevice state information to facilitate stateful failover, but it doesnot itself commonly perform meaningful work until the primary devicefails. In active/active implementations, both devices are online andcollaboratively process information and issue commands under normalconditions. When one device fails, all processing is handled by theremaining device.

A user can be an occupant of a vehicle 100 that implements the system ofFIG. 1. A user can further be an assembler, technician, or mechanicworking on the vehicle to configure the system of FIG. 1 for use by anend-user of the vehicle.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary block diagram for a (primary and/orsecondary) processing module 124A-C.

Processing module 124 may include processor 210, memory 220, storage230, and interfaces for one or more buses 240-270. Among the interfaces240-270 include high-speed CAN bus 240, low-speed CAN bus 250, LIN bus260, network interface 270, and/or wireless interface 280. One skilledin the art will recognize that processing module 124 may take otherconfigurations and with other buses as known in the art, and interfaces240-290 may be implemented with more or fewer buses than those shown.

The operations of processing module 124 will now be described withrespect to the high-speed CAN bus interface 240 and low-speed CAN businterface 250 as an exemplary configuration in one embodiment of theinvention. In one implementation, processing module 124 receives datatransmitted over vehicle bus 180 through high-speed CAN bus interface240 and/or low-speed CAN bus interface 250. Data transmitted over thehigh-speed CAN bus includes priority data from subsystems such asanti-lock braking system (ABS), which may be used by brake control unit176 and braking system 136, engine control unit (ECU), which may be usedby power source control 164, transmission control unit (TCU), which maybe used by transmission control unit 170 and gear controller 116, andsupplemental restraint system (SRS), such as airbag deployment controlunit 133 and collision sensor 132 and seating system controller andsensor 178, as described above. Data transmitted over the low-speed CANbus includes other noncritical data, such as engine temperature and oilpressure sensor readings.

Wireless interface 280, by contrast, can be a transceiver for one ormore long, intermediate, or short range wireless networks, such as aradio (e.g., cellular such as CDMA, GSM, or IS-95 network), 802.X, aWiFi™ network, a Bluetooth™ network, and the like, sending and receivinga wide variety of information, including lower priority information,such as data for the convenience and enjoyment of the occupants inentertainment system 190 or seating system 148. The wireless interface280 can access information over one or more wireless networks using anappropriate protocol, such as the Wireless Application Protocol,Wireless Internet Protocol, Wireless Session Protocol, BluetoothWireless Protocol, Wireless Datagram Protocol, Wireless HART Protocol,Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP), MiWi and MiWi P2P, RuBee (IEEE standard1902.1), Wireless USB, Wireless Transport Layer Security (WTLS), and thelike. In one vehicle configuration, the wireless interface 280 connects,via a short distance protocol such as Bluetooth™ or WiFi™, to anexternal computational device, such as a cell phone or tablet computer,for access to remote nodes over the Internet.

Local network interface 270 is a transceiver for signals exchanged withother on board components of the vehicle (including the componentsdiscussed above with respect to FIG. 1). The signals may be sent over awired or wireless (or combination thereof) network. In oneconfiguration, the local network interface is a wireless access point.Any suitable local area network protocol may be used, with the Ethernetprotocol and the short-range protocols mentioned above being examples.

The processor 210 may comprise a general purpose programmable(micro)processor or controller for executing application programming orinstructions. In accordance with at least some embodiments, theprocessor 210 may include multiple processor cores, and/or implementmultiple virtual processors. In accordance with still other embodiments,the processor 210 may include multiple physical processors. As aparticular example, the processor 304 may comprise a speciallyconfigured application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or otherintegrated circuit, a digital signal processor, a controller, ahardwired electronic or logic circuit, a programmable logic device orgate array, a special purpose computer, or the like. The processor 210generally functions to run programming code or instructions implementingvarious functions of the device 200.

Memory 220 for use in connection with the execution of applicationprogramming or instructions by the processor 210, and for the temporaryor long term storage of program instructions and/or data. As examples,the memory 220 may comprise RAM, DRAM, SDRAM, or other solid statememory. Alternatively or in addition, data storage 230 may be provided.Like the memory 220, the data storage 230 may comprise a solid statememory device or devices. Alternatively or in addition, the data storage230 may comprise a hard disk drive or other random access memory.

FIG. 3 depicts a vehicle 300 with multiple processing modules accordingto an embodiment. Vehicle 300 includes bus 180, vehicle component 310,and processing modules 124A-C.

Vehicle component 310 is an exemplary vehicle component for illustrationpurposes that is connected to bus 380. Vehicle component 310 mayrepresent any of the vehicle components discussed in connection withvehicle 100 (FIG. 1).

Each of the processing modules 124A-C is each coupled to bus 180.Processing module 124A is located in the engine compartment of vehicle300; processing module 124B is located in the passenger compartment ofvehicle 300; and processing module 124C is located in the truck ofvehicle 300.

In one configuration, some of the processing modules 124A-C may havelimited processing functions as compared to the others. For example,processing module 124A may act as the default processing module forvehicle 300 normally because of its location being close to mostcritical vehicle components in the engine compartment (e.g., ECU, TCU).If the other processing modules 124B-C are only needed for redundancy,they may be implemented to only have limited capabilities (e.g., theseprocessing modules would not be require to have processing all criticaland non-critical functions). This implementation has the advantage ofreduced costs and/or space as compared to fitting processing module willfull capabilities. The processing modules 124A-C may also have cascadinglevels of capabilities. For example, processing module 124B is fitted inthe passenger compartment and is deemed to most likely survive acollision; it may be required to have capabilities critical to vehicleoperation but no other capabilities to save space in the passengercompartment. Processing module 124C may have additional capabilitiessuch as a cellular module so that emergency calls may be automaticallyplaced if the default processing module 124A fails.

In another configuration, each of the processing modules 124A-C may havedifferent capabilities. For example, processing module 124A may havecapabilities only for critical vehicle functions; processing module 124Cmay have capabilities only for non-critical vehicle functions; andprocessing module 124B may be reserved for back-up processing of bothcritical and non-critical vehicle functions. In one implementation,processing may be off-loaded to another processing module if one modulebecomes overloaded. This configuration has the advantage furtherreduction in costs and space because processing power is not wasted dueto redundancy. In the case where one processing module malfunctions, theother processing modules may pick up processing duties via a processoroff-load procedure. If there is not enough processing power all wantedfunctionalities, the processing modules may work together to prioritizecritical vehicle functions ahead of non-critical functions.

FIG. 5 depicts computational modules and data structures in memory 220according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Critical system controller(s) 512 control, monitor, and/or operatecritical systems. Critical systems can include one or more of (dependingon the particular vehicle) monitoring, controlling, and/or operating theECU, TCU, door settings, window settings, and/or blind spot monitor,monitoring, controlling, and/or operating the safety equipment (e.g.,airbag deployment control unit 133, collision sensor 132, nearby objectsensing system, seat belt control unit, sensors for setting the seatbelt, etc.), monitoring and/or controlling certain critical sensors suchas the power source controller and energy output sensor 164, enginetemperature, oil pressure sensing, hydraulic pressure sensors, sensorsfor headlight 128 and other lights (e.g., emergency light, brake light,parking light, fog light, interior or passenger compartment light,and/or tail light state (on or off)), vehicle control system sensors,wireless network sensor (e.g., Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth sensor), cellulardata sensor, and/or steering/torque sensor, controlling the operation ofthe engine (e.g., ignition), head light control unit, power steering,display panel, switch state control unit 168, power control unit 174,and/or brake control unit 176, and/or issuing alerts to a user and/orremote monitoring entity of potential problems with a vehicle operation.

Non-critical system controller(s) 516 control, monitor, and/or operatenon-critical systems. Non-critical systems can include one or more of(depending on the particular vehicle) monitoring, controlling, and/oroperating a non-critical system. emissions control, seating systemcontroller and sensor 178, entertainment system 190, monitoring certainnon-critical sensors such as ambient (outdoor) weather readings (e.g.,temperature, precipitation, wind speed, and the like), odometer readingsensor, trip mileage reading sensor, road condition sensors (e.g., wet,icy, etc.), radar transmitter/receiver output, brake wear sensor, oxygensensor, ambient lighting sensor, vision system sensor, ranging sensor,parking sensor, heating, venting, and air conditioning (HVAC) system andsensor, water sensor, air-fuel ratio meter, hall effect sensor,microphone, radio frequency (RF) sensor, and/or infrared (IR) sensor.

On board sensor monitor(s) 520 include interfaces to receive signalsfrom and transmit signals to a corresponding on-board sensor, includingthe on-board sensors discussed above, and the logic to monitor sensoroperation and readings.

The diagnostics module 528 may be configured to handle warning/errorsignals in a predetermined manner. For instance, the signals can bepresented to a third party and/or occupant and/or cause the performanceof on-board diagnostics.

The network selector 536 selects a network for signal transmission basedon network/node status, signal/noise ratio, type of signal, availableand/or unavailable bandwidth, network performance parameter(s) (e.g.,availability, packet drop or loss, jitter, latency, buffer capacity,throughput, and the like) quality of service, and/or other parametersand configures the signal for transmission over the selected network.

The remote control module 540 receives a request from a remote source orthird party to command a vehicle function (which function may beidentified by a suitable function-specific code), authenticates therequestor, and if successfully authenticated and if privileged torequest the performance of the vehicle function, executes the requestnotwithstanding a contrary command from the vehicle operator. Therequestor can, for example, be a vehicle owner, a law enforcementauthority, a vehicle manufacturer, and the like.

In one application, processing module 124 is configured to processinformation sent over the CAN buses. As priority data is received byprocessing module 124 from high-speed CAN bus interface 240 and/orlow-speed CAN bus 250, processing module 124 may determine the nature ofthe received data and independently do further processing on thereceived data. In a preferred embodiment, processor 210 executesinstructions stored in memory 220 to perform these functions. Further,memory 220 serves as stores and retrieves for data by processor 210.

In one configuration, processing module 124 only receives data overhigh-speed CAN bus 240 and may send the data back over low-speed CAN bus250. As the CAN bus provides arbitration-free transmission, processingmodule 124 may passively listen to information traffic, which includespriority data from the various components as discussed, sent overhigh-speed CAN bus 240. Processing module 124 then determines if a pieceof received information may need further processing and should be sentto devices via low-speed CAN bus 250.

For example, collision sensor 132 may have detected a frontal collision.In one data path, collision sensor 132 may send a signal with details tothe collision (e.g., areas of impact and/or force and/or velocity ofimpact) over high-speed CAN bus 240 with specific target to airbagrelease control unit 133 to potentially deploy the airbags once airbagrelease control unit 133 determines that it is suitable to do so uponthe receipt of the sent data. Since the CAN bus is arbitration-free,processing module 124 also receives the collision information fromcollision sensor 132. Processing module 124 then processes theinformation received to determine to relay the information to aninformation display (e.g., display console of entertainment system 190)via the low speed CAN bus 250.

It is noted that the data rate is limited in the current implementationsof the CAN bus. However, future implementations may allow for higherspeeds such that the CAN bus may support data rate suitable formultimedia application. In these implementations, processing module 200may be configured to leverage the CAN bus for multimedia use. Forexample, real-time multimedia information (e.g., analog/digital radio ortelevision signal) may be received by an antenna and transmitted througha CAN bus via processing unit 200 to entertainment system 190. At somepoint in time, one component of vehicle 100 may have suffered amalfunction that requires information the driver. In the defaultimplementation of the CAN bus, the higher priority signal from themalfunctioning component will have priority over the multimediainformation. With the leveraged CAN bus by processing module 200, thehigh priority signal from the malfunctioning component can be furtherprocessed by processor 210. If processor 210 determines that themalfunction is minor, processor 210 may relay the malfunctioninformation to the low speed CAN bus 250 but being mixed in with themultimedia information such that there is little disruption to playingbacking the multimedia information. Further, processor 210 may alsoconsider if the malfunction requires further processing such asnotification to a repair facility or emergency services.

In another configuration, processing module 200 may leverage other busessuch as the network interface 270 and/or wireless interface 280 thathave more bandwidth for the data. For example, while the presentimplementation of the CAN bus would not support multimedia informationwith any substantial bit rate, the network interface 270 may beleveraged such that while CAN bus information is received via the highspeed CAN bus 240, multimedia information is relayed separately via thenetwork interface 270. This enables the processing module 200 toimplement the previous example discussed involving relaying informationregarding malfunctioning component without waiting for a futureimplementation of the CAN bus.

In another application, a processing module 124 may add furtherexpansion modules 290A-N for further capabilities. For example,expansion modules 290A-N may contain a cellular telephony module. Thecellular telephony module can comprise a GSM, CDMA, FDMA, or otherdigital cellular telephony transceiver and/or analog cellular telephonytransceiver capable of supporting voice, multimedia and/or datatransfers over a cellular network. Additionally, expansion modules290A-N can include other cellular telephony modules from differentproviders or modes for other wireless communications protocols. Asexamples, the modules for other wireless communications protocols caninclude a Wi-Fi, BLUETOOTH™, WiMax, infrared, or other wirelesscommunications link. The cellular telephony module and the otherwireless communications module can each be associated with a shared or adedicated antenna. Further, expansion modules 290A-N may also includeother wired bus modules that may connect to additional essential andnonessential vehicle components that may be installed or upgraded in thefuture. Processing modules 290A-N may contain functions critical to theoperation of the vehicle such as engine control (ECU), transmissioncontrol (TCU), airbag control, various sensors, or other operational orsafety related components. Further, processing modules 290 may take onmore processing duties from a vehicle component 310 connected to bus380. Thus, processing modules 124A-C benefits from redundancy in thecase that one of modules malfunctions. Further, in a vehicle collision,it is expected that at least some of the processing modules may totallymalfunction. In these cases, the remaining processing modules may takeover limited or full processing duties of the malfunctioning vehiclecomponents 310 or processing modules 390A-C.

In one configuration, processor 210, memory 220, storage 230, and thebus interfaces 240-280 may also be expansion modules similar to 290A-N.For example, processor 210 may be initially implemented as an OMAP 4processor. In the future, OMAP 5 processors may be developed andprocessor 210 may be upgraded as a modular component.

In another application, processing module 124 is able to supportadditional vehicle hardware and/or software components that are added tothe vehicle and is connected to processing module 124 via a bus. Forexample, vehicle 100 may have installed an additional entertainmentsystem. In one configuration, processing module 124 can treat theadditional component that is connected to processing module 200 via abus as an expansion module 290A-N.

In another configuration, the additional hardware and/or softwarecomponent may require further processing for it to work with processingmodule 124. For example, the bus protocol may need to be modified tosupport communicating with the additional component because theadditional component has capabilities beyond the existing protocol(e.g., an extension to an existing bus architecture). In oneimplementation, processing module 124 must first check to ensure thatthe additional component complies with OEM defined standards such thatrogue components not recognized for a particular vehicle would not besupported.

FIG. 4 depicts the vehicle 100 in communication, via first, second, . .. networks 404 A, B, . . . , with a remote node 400, such as acomputational device, e.g., a server, mobile phone, tablet computer,laptop computer, personal computer, and the like, of the vehicle owner,law enforcement authority, insurance company, vehicle or partsmanufacturer/vendor, government entity, dealer, repair facility (e.g.,to provide vehicle diagnostics, maintenance alerts, vehicle or partrecall notifications, and/or predictive analytics), a service provider(e.g., a convenience service provider such as a service to connect thevehicle operator with a dealer, a service to locate the vehicle, aservice to provide vehicle information and/or feature assistance, anautomotive navigation system service and a service to start a vehicle(OnStar™ being an example), a location-based service provider (e.g.,traffic and/or weather reporting and/or adviser on gas, accommodations,navigation, parking assistance, and/or food), Internet content provider,software vendor, concierge service provider, a processing module ofanother vehicle, a roadside monitor, sign, beacon, and the like, to namea few.

The first, second, . . . networks 404A,B, . . . can be any wirelessnetwork, such as a radio or cellular network (e.g., CDMA, CDMA2000,AMPS, D-AMPS, TACS, ETACS, CSK, CDMAOne, GSM, EDGE, GPRS, HSCSD, UMTS,WCDMA, HSPA, WIMAX, WIMAX ADVANCED, LTE ADVANCED, or FDMA in accordancewith the 1G, 2G, 2G transitional, 3G, 3G transitional, 4G or 5G cellularnetwork standards), a Wi Fi network, a Bluetooth network, and the like.

The vehicle 100 includes a transceiver 408 to send and receive signalsover a selected one of the first, second, . . . networks 404A, B, . . ., a gateway/firewall 412 to provide secure connectivity between thevarious components of the vehicle 100 and the first, second, . . .networks 404A, B, . . . , primary and secondary processing modules 124Aand B, memory/storage 220 or 230, on board sensors 416 (discussed abovewith reference to FIG. 1), input/output system(s) 420 and associatedmedia controller (discussed below) to manage and control the outputpresented by the input/output system(s) to the user, network controller428 to supervise local networks and nodes thereof and identify and, ifpossible, isolate malfunctioning networks and/or nodes to avoiddetrimental impact on other networks and/or nodes of the vehicle 100,and external computational device(s) 432 of occupants, such as wirelesscapable mobile phones, tablet computers, laptop computers, and the like.As will be appreciated, the logic for the gateway/firewall 412, mediacontroller 424 and network controller 428 can be contained withinmemory/storage 220, 330. The various components are connected by a bus,wireless network, or combination thereof (denoted by reference 436).

The gateway/firewall 412 can be any suitable module that can maintainsecure connectivity. The need for the gateway/firewall 412 isnecessitated by the assignment of a wireless data network address, suchas defined by IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6), with the correspondingprocessing module 124. As will be appreciated, IPv6 addresses, ascommonly displayed to users, consist of eight groups of four hexadecimaldigits separated by colons, for example 2001:0db8:85a3:0042:0000:8a2e:0370:7334. Each processing module 124 can havean independent network address or use a common network address. Thegateway can be any module equipped for interfacing with another networkthat uses one or more different communication protocols. The firewallcan use any technique to maintain security, including network addresstranslation, network layer or packet filtration, application-layerfirewall, and the like.

For an additional external computational device 432 that connects toprocessing module 124 via wireless interface 280, a secured connectionprotocol is needed. Unlike a wired bus connection, which is generallyelectronically confined to vehicle 100, a wireless connection viawireless interface 280 may be broadcast to other communication systemswithin the vicinity of vehicle 100. Thus, other wireless communicationhardware, systems, and networks might be able to communicate with thecommunication system of the vehicle 100. This ability is potentially asecurity hazard.

To resolve this issue, wireless security rules should be used to ensurethat only trusted devices, such as the external computational device432, communicate wirelessly, via the wireless interface 280, with the onboard vehicle components through the wireless interface 280. Suchsecurity is provided by the gateway/firewall 412 applying known securityalgorithms. In one implementation, wireless security may be implementedby the gateway/firewall 412 using the current security setup in the802.11 standard such as Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) or Wi-FiProtected Access (WPA) or other security systems as known in the art.OEMs may also choose to implement security by using a propriety securitysystem and/or wireless protocol to work with the in-vehicle wirelesscommunication network.

Upgrading the vehicle 100 using different processing modules and/orother on board components, such as on board sensors 416, can be donesecurely and seamlessly. A limit may be imposed on the place and mannerin which an additional component communicating via the in-vehiclewireless network may be added to the vehicle 100. For example,installation of the additional component may only be available at anautomobile shop or may even more limited to only in OEM approved shopsor dealership to ensure that the newly installed component is fullytested to communicate only with vehicle 100 and not with other adjacentvehicles.

To facilitate this process, a handshake procedure may be used during theinitial installation of the component. In one implementation, an OEMapproved shop may have codes that will allow the new component to accepta link with vehicle 100. During this handshake procedure, vehicle 100and its relevant components, such as processing module 200, maynegotiate a protocol and/or security settings to communicate with thenew component. For example, a symmetric or asymmetric code or key pairmay be developed for encrypting communications. Alternatively, codes forWEP, WPA, or other security systems as known in the art may be developedfor secured communication. After this initial handshake procedure, thenew component and vehicle 100 will not have to do any further securitysetup in the future to prevent leaking the secured codes. In a furtherimplementation, the new component is considered married or bound tovehicle 100 and may not communicate with any other vehicles unlessunmarried or unbound when the component is removed at an approved shop.The dedication of the component to the vehicle may be done by using aunique code, such as a serial number of the component or vehicle, toenable a type of routine licensing compliance check when the car isactivated. This can be done, for example, by comparing a unique codereceived by the installed component from another vehicle component or bythe other vehicle component from the installed component. The licensingcheck is successful when the received code matches a code stored inmemory of the receiving device.

In another configuration, the additional, or installed, component mayalso communicate wirelessly with other vehicle components of vehicle 100without needed processing module 200 to relay any communication. Thismay be done by sharing a vehicle encryption scheme and code for thewireless use. This may be useful for emergency purposes (e.g., thepolice may have a need to control certain components in a vehicle).

Referring to FIG. 5, the diagnostic module 528 queries on board sensors416 and/or on board sensor monitor(s) 520, and/or critical and/ornon-critical system controller(s) 512 and 516 to determine states ofvarious parts, components, subsystems, tasks, functions, and/oroperations of the vehicle. The diagnostic module 528 can then performdiagnostics using locally stored or remotely stored (at remote node 400)pre-determined logic to identify faults, malfunctions, or other problemsand, optionally, generate repair advice and/or warnings and/orinstructions and/or recommendations to the vehicle operator. Thisdiagnosis can also locate and/or determine and/or identify any parts orcomponents required to repair the vehicle, the source and/or source(s)for replacement parts and/or components, identify a nearest and/orpreferred service or repair facility or service, and/or obtain anymanufacturer's and/or vendor's update information required to repair orresolve the identified fault, malfunction, or other problem. Thediagnostic module 528 can provide any repair instructions and/orrecommendations to the operator, pre-order the replacement parts and/orcomponents, contact the nearest and/or preferred service facility for arepair estimate, contact the nearest and/or preferred service facilityto schedule an appointment for the repair or service, and/or forward,optionally at the owner's and/or operator's instructions, the collectedinformation regarding the fault, malfunction, or other problem to aremote node 400 (specified by the operator and/or owner) for monitoringand/or evaluation. The owner and/or operator can have a default locationor select a location for fault, malfunction, or other problem analysisassistance.

FIG. 6 depicts an operation of the diagnostic module 528 in accordancewith embodiments of the present disclosure. In step 600, the diagnosticmodule 528 receives, from a local or remote source (such as the remotenode 400), a signal warning of an actual or potential malfunction of anon-board component, including any of the components discussed above.

In step 604, the diagnostic module 528 determines user and/or defaultpreferences regarding treatment of the signal. Preferences may be storedin local and/or remote memory. In some embodiments, preferences may beassociated with user settings and may be created and/or modified. Insome cases, preferences may be associated with a vehicle (e.g., make,model, type, serial number, etc.), occupant, operator, or other party.The various options include one or more of present the signal to a thirdparty such as a manufacturer or servicing entity (option 608),presenting the signal to an occupant of the vehicle (option 612),contacting an emergency service provider or first responder (e.g.,request tow truck or roadside service provider, contact police, and/orrequest dispatch of an ambulance), and performing on board diagnostics(option 616) to obtain more diagnostic information regarding the actualor potential malfunction followed by option 608 or 612. In oneapplication, the signal is forwarded to a manufacturer or repair servicevendor that compares the reported fault and vehicle-specific parameters(e.g., mileage, date of last service, and/or environmental conditions)to the maintenance and/or fault history for the vehicle model andprovides, to the vehicle operator, the result of the comparison alongwith a probability of the diagnosis being correct. The manufacturer orservice vendor also updates its database for the particular model of thevehicle to reflect the reported fault. The manufacturer or servicevendor can dispatch an emergency service provider or first responder tothe location reported by the vehicle SPS, and/or schedules the workloadfor the repair shop and pre-orders the required part(s) for the repairshop.

In step 620, the diagnostic module 528 determines a further treatment ofthe warning or error signal. The determination may be based, forinstance, on a command or request received from the third party oroccupant or an applicable set of rules and/or policies.

FIG. 7 depicts another operation of the diagnostic module 528. Ingeneral, FIG. 7 depicts a vehicle ecosystem capable of providingaccurate indications for purposes of service and maintenance inaccordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. Currently,vehicles may offer a warning light and/or series of lights to provideinformation to a user regarding vehicle condition. These lights may havea multitude of meanings that may require further inspection by amechanic or other qualified individual. In order to interpret and decodethe meanings behind a light combination, the user is routinely requiredto consult the owner's manual, the Internet, or to contact the dealer.In some cases, these lights are only maintenance reminders and need notbe immediately addressed. However, in other cases, the lights are urgentand require immediate attention.

The present disclosure can provide an Internet enabled vehicle that iscapable of transmitting vehicle codes, error code readings, and toremotely diagnose and display these codes to a user and/or a mechanic.This diagnostic information may be performed on-board or remotely. It isanticipated that the information may be accessed according to chosenpreferences. Additionally, it is anticipated that based on the type ofwarning/error code, the system may suggest a recommended course ofaction. For example, if the error code indicates a severe orcatastrophic failure the system may suggest to pull-over, stop the car,and/or proceed to a safe area away from the automobile.

In some embodiments, the system may provide “conversational” warnings toa user. These warnings and associated codes may also be simultaneouslytransmitted to a selected garage (e.g., repair vendor, mechanic, etc.)and/or postponed for approval to transmit to the nearest garage (eitherwired or wirelessly). In addition, the system may estimate anapproximate time to fix (based on past garage fix times, garageinventory, severity of problem, combinations, etc.) and make appropriatesuggestions. For example, the system may provide the conversationalwarning “Please do not be alarmed, your engine is running slightly lowon oil; there are four garages in the general area. You have time to geta cup of coffee while you wait; there are three coffee shops in theimmediate location” and/or “It appears that the rear left suspension ismalfunctioning and the upper strut will need to be replaced. It isnoticed that you are greater than 80 miles from home, would you like tobook a reservation at a local hotel? There are five hotels in the arearated three stars or above.”

Referring to FIG. 7, the diagnostic module 528, in step 700, receivesand interprets a maintenance and/or system error and/or warning or othercode. Such codes are known in the art of automotive design and generallydepend on the automotive and/or component manufacturer. Accordingly, thediagnostic module 528 will, generally, have a lookup table or other setof data structures to map the signal/code not only to a correspondingcondition and/or conversation meaning but also behavioral rule in a ruleset. The data set may be stored in local and/or remote memory accessiblevia the diagnostic module 528. In appropriate applications, theconversational meaning can be further determined based on the condition.Additionally or alternatively, at least one appropriate conversationalmeaning (e.g., a conversational meaning that applies to one or moresignals) may be selected from the group of conversational meaningsincluded in the set of data. This conversational meaning may be providedto an occupant of the vehicle.

The diagnostic module 528, in step 708, provides the conversationalmeaning, such as audibly and/or visually, to the vehicle operator.

The diagnostic module 528, in step 712, determines other factors relatedto the received code(s). The pertinent rule in the rule set, forexample, can cause the diagnostic to query other components potentiallyimpacted by the condition and/or having other data points relevant tothe condition. The diagnostic module 528, in accordance with thepertinent rule, may contact a remote node 400 for additional informationrelevant to the code, including the conversational advice to be providedto the vehicle operator.

In step 716, the diagnostic module 528 provides the conversationaladvice to the operator. Advice may be provided based on the type ofcode, number of codes, and/or rated level of the code received. Theadvice may be interactive, in which event the operator would query thediagnostic module 528 for information not clear from the initiallyprovided conversation meaning and/or advice. A menu-type structure canbe used by the diagnostic module to respond to the operator request forfurther information. Such further information may require the diagnosticmodule to initiate a contact, on behalf of the operator, with a remotenode 400.

In step 720, the diagnostic module 528 logs codes, internally and/orprovides the codes to a remote node 400 for logging, and provides fortransfer of the operator to a selected entity or entities, such as oneor more remote nodes 400.

In step 724, the diagnostic module 528 optionally transfers the codes,on a predetermined stimulus, to a remote node 400.

The exemplary systems and methods of this disclosure have been describedin relation to a diagnostics module 528 and associated devices. Assuggested by this disclosure, features may be shared between adiagnostics module 528 and a device. However, to avoid unnecessarilyobscuring the present disclosure, the preceding description omits anumber of known structures and devices. This omission is not to beconstrued as a limitation of the scopes of the claims. Specific detailsare set forth to provide an understanding of the present disclosure. Itshould however be appreciated that the present disclosure may bepracticed in a variety of ways beyond the specific detail set forthherein.

Furthermore, while the exemplary aspects, embodiments, and/orconfigurations illustrated herein show the various components of thesystem collocated, certain components of the system can be locatedremotely, at distant portions of a distributed network, such as a LANand/or the Internet, or within a dedicated system. Thus, it should beappreciated, that the components of the system can be combined in to oneor more devices, such as a Personal Computer (PC), laptop, netbook,smart phone, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), tablet, etc., orcollocated on a particular node of a distributed network, such as ananalog and/or digital telecommunications network, a packet-switchnetwork, or a circuit-switched network. It will be appreciated from thepreceding description, and for reasons of computational efficiency, thatthe components of the system can be arranged at any location within adistributed network of components without affecting the operation of thesystem.

Furthermore, it should be appreciated that the various links connectingthe elements can be wired or wireless links, or any combination thereof,or any other known or later developed element(s) that is capable ofsupplying and/or communicating data to and from the connected elements.These wired or wireless links can also be secure links and may becapable of communicating encrypted information. Transmission media usedas links, for example, can be any suitable carrier for electricalsignals, including coaxial cables, copper wire and fiber optics, and maytake the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those generated duringradio-wave and infra-red data communications.

Also, while the flowcharts have been discussed and illustrated inrelation to a particular sequence of events, it should be appreciatedthat changes, additions, and omissions to this sequence can occurwithout materially affecting the operation of the disclosed embodiments,configuration, and aspects.

A number of variations and modifications of the disclosure can be used.It would be possible to provide for some features of the disclosurewithout providing others.

In some embodiments, the systems and methods of this disclosure can beimplemented in conjunction with a special purpose computer, a programmedmicroprocessor or microcontroller and peripheral integrated circuitelement(s), an ASIC or other integrated circuit, a digital signalprocessor, a hard-wired electronic or logic circuit such as discreteelement circuit, a programmable logic device or gate array such as PLD,PLA, FPGA, PAL, special purpose computer, any comparable means, or thelike. In general, any device(s) or means capable of implementing themethodology illustrated herein can be used to implement the variousaspects of this disclosure. Exemplary hardware that can be used for thedisclosed embodiments, configurations and aspects includes computers,handheld devices, telephones (e.g., cellular, Internet enabled, digital,analog, hybrids, and others), and other hardware known in the art. Someof these devices include processors (e.g., a single or multiplemicroprocessors), memory, nonvolatile storage, input devices, and outputdevices. Furthermore, alternative software implementations including,but not limited to, distributed processing or component/objectdistributed processing, parallel processing, or virtual machineprocessing can also be constructed to implement the methods describedherein.

In yet another embodiment, the disclosed methods may be readilyimplemented in conjunction with software using object or object-orientedsoftware development environments that provide portable source code thatcan be used on a variety of computer or workstation platforms.Alternatively, the disclosed system may be implemented partially orfully in hardware using standard logic circuits or VLSI design. Whethersoftware or hardware is used to implement the systems in accordance withthis disclosure is dependent on the speed and/or efficiency requirementsof the system, the particular function, and the particular software orhardware systems or microprocessor or microcomputer systems beingutilized.

In yet another embodiment, the disclosed methods may be partiallyimplemented in software that can be stored on a storage medium, executedon programmed general-purpose computer with the cooperation of acontroller and memory, a special purpose computer, a microprocessor, orthe like. In these instances, the systems and methods of this disclosurecan be implemented as program embedded on personal computer such as anapplet, JAVA® or CGI script, as a resource residing on a server orcomputer workstation, as a routine embedded in a dedicated measurementsystem, system component, or the like. The system can also beimplemented by physically incorporating the system and/or method into asoftware and/or hardware system.

Although the present disclosure describes components and functionsimplemented in the aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations withreference to particular standards and protocols, the aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations are not limited to such standards andprotocols. Other similar standards and protocols not mentioned hereinare in existence and are considered to be included in the presentdisclosure. Moreover, the standards and protocols mentioned herein andother similar standards and protocols not mentioned herein areperiodically superseded by faster or more effective equivalents havingessentially the same functions. Such replacement standards and protocolshaving the same functions are considered equivalents included in thepresent disclosure.

The present disclosure, in various aspects, embodiments, and/orconfigurations, includes components, methods, processes, systems and/orapparatus substantially as depicted and described herein, includingvarious aspects, embodiments, configurations embodiments,subcombinations, and/or subsets thereof. Those of skill in the art willunderstand how to make and use the disclosed aspects, embodiments,and/or configurations after understanding the present disclosure. Thepresent disclosure, in various aspects, embodiments, and/orconfigurations, includes providing devices and processes in the absenceof items not depicted and/or described herein or in various aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations hereof, including in the absence ofsuch items as may have been used in previous devices or processes, e.g.,for improving performance, achieving ease and\or reducing cost ofimplementation.

The foregoing discussion has been presented for purposes of illustrationand description. The foregoing is not intended to limit the disclosureto the form or forms disclosed herein. In the foregoing DetailedDescription for example, various features of the disclosure are groupedtogether in one or more aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations forthe purpose of streamlining the disclosure. The features of the aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations of the disclosure may be combined inalternate aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations other than thosediscussed above. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted asreflecting an intention that the claims require more features than areexpressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claimsreflect, inventive aspects lie in less than all features of a singleforegoing disclosed aspect, embodiment, and/or configuration. Thus, thefollowing claims are hereby incorporated into this Detailed Description,with each claim standing on its own as a separate preferred embodimentof the disclosure.

Moreover, though the description has included description of one or moreaspects, embodiments, and/or configurations and certain variations andmodifications, other variations, combinations, and modifications arewithin the scope of the disclosure, e.g., as may be within the skill andknowledge of those in the art, after understanding the presentdisclosure. It is intended to obtain rights which include alternativeaspects, embodiments, and/or configurations to the extent permitted,including alternate, interchangeable and/or equivalent structures,functions, ranges or steps to those claimed, whether or not suchalternate, interchangeable and/or equivalent structures, functions,ranges or steps are disclosed herein, and without intending to publiclydedicate any patentable subject matter.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of providing conversational vehiclediagnostic information to a receiving party, comprising: receiving asignal from one or more components of a vehicle, the signal representingone or more of a code, warning, and indication; interpreting a meaningassociated with the signal; determining a conversational meaning basedon one or more rules to represent the meaning associated with thesignal; and providing the conversational meaning to an occupant of thevehicle.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: storing themeaning associated with the signal in memory; and determining totransmit the meaning associated with the signal to a third party.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein determining the conversational meaningfurther comprises: referring to a set of data, wherein the set of dataincludes a plurality of conversational meanings mapped to correspondingsignals; and selecting an appropriate conversational meaning from theplurality of conversational meanings based on the set of data.
 4. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the conversational meaning is provided to theoccupant of the vehicle as a visual text output via a display associatedwith the vehicle.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the conversationalmeaning is provided to the occupant of the vehicle as an audible outputvia at least one speaker associated with the vehicle.
 6. The method ofclaim 2, further comprising: transmitting the meaning associated withthe signal to the third party automatically and based at least partiallyon the one or more rules.
 7. The method of claim 2, wherein providingthe conversational meaning to the occupant of the vehicle, furthercomprises: providing additional information to the occupant of thevehicle, wherein the additional information is associated with theconversational meaning.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the additionalinformation includes one or more options provided for a selectable inputfrom the occupant of the vehicle.
 9. The method of claim 8, furthercomprising: transmitting the meaning associated with the signal to thethird party based at least partially on the selectable input from theoccupant of the vehicle.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the thirdparty is at least one of a vehicle manufacturer, dealer, repairfacility, mechanic, and code recording storage.
 11. The method of claim1, wherein the signal is received via a remote node in wirelesscommunication with the vehicle, and wherein the signal representsinformation relating to the one or more components of the vehicle. 12.The method of claim 11, wherein the remote node is associated with atleast one of a vehicle manufacturer, parts manufacturer, dealer, repairfacility, mechanic, and government entity.
 13. A tangible,non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions storedthereon that, when executed by a processor, perform the methodcomprising: receiving a signal from one or more components of a vehicle,the signal representing one or more of a code, warning, and indication;interpreting a meaning associated with the signal; determining aconversational meaning based on one or more rules to represent themeaning associated with the signal; and providing the conversationalmeaning to an occupant of the vehicle.
 14. The tangible, non-transitorycomputer readable medium of claim 13, wherein the method furthercomprises: storing the meaning associated with the signal in memory; anddetermining to transmit the meaning associated with the signal to athird party.
 15. The tangible, non-transitory computer readable mediumof claim 14, wherein the method further comprises: providing additionalinformation to the occupant of the vehicle, wherein the additionalinformation is associated with the conversational meaning, theadditional information including one or more options provided for aselectable input from the occupant of the vehicle; and transmitting themeaning associated with the signal to the third party based at leastpartially on the selectable input from the occupant of the vehicle. 16.The tangible, non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 14,wherein the method further comprises: transmitting the meaningassociated with the signal to the third party automatically and based atleast partially on the one or more rules.
 17. The tangible,non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 13, wherein the signalis received via a remote node in wireless communication with thevehicle, and wherein the signal represents information relating to theone or more components of the vehicle.
 18. A system for providingconversational vehicle diagnostic information to a receiving party,comprising: a vehicle having one or more components; at least one sensoroperatively connected to the one or more components; a memory; and amicroprocessor executable diagnostic module operable to: receive asignal from at least one of the one or more sensors and the one or morecomponents, the signal representing one or more of a code, warning, andindication; interpret a meaning associated with the signal; determine aconversational meaning based on one or more rules stored in the memoryto represent the meaning associated with the signal; and provide theconversational meaning to an occupant of the vehicle.
 19. The system ofclaim 18, further comprising: a conversational meaning presentationdevice, wherein the conversational meaning presentation device includesat least one of a display and a speaker, and wherein the conversationalmeaning presentation device is configured to provide the conversationalmeaning to the occupant of the vehicle.
 20. The system of claim 18,further comprising: a communication transceiver, wherein thecommunication transceiver is configured to communicate with a remotenode, the remote node associated with at least one of a vehiclemanufacturer, parts manufacturer, dealer, repair facility, vehicleowner, mechanic, and government entity, and wherein the signal isreceived via the communication transceiver over a wireless network.